A black girl in Eleanor’s gym class, DeNice is wise in spite of her very youthful appearance and kind to Eleanor when no one else is, helping her clean up her locker in the wake of Tina’s crew’s pranks. DeNice is funny and practical, and helps Eleanor learn to take social strife, gossip, and drama with a grain of salt. DeNice and her friend Beebi soon become Eleanor’s closest friends in school.